Design by Claire: Projects

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Lotus and Blossom Mandala Pattern

One Sunday afternoon I was scrolling through my Instagram feed - as one does - when I came across a gorgeous crocheted mandala pattern! It was called the Lotus and Blossom Mandala - even the name sounds amazing! The creative genius behind this beautiful pattern is Mark from @theguywiththehook. I had only recently discovered him on Instagram and I'm crazy about all of his work.

In Mark's post on Instagram he happened to mention that the pattern would soon be available, after he had tested it to make sure everything was ok with it. On a whim I commented and offered to test it for him. I was over the moon excited when a few minutes later I received a message from Mark saying he would love me to help as a tester.

I've always wanted to be a pattern tester, so first thing on Monday morning I popped in to my favourite yarn shop (Be Inspired) and chose some Scheepjes Catona colours to get going.

The pattern was super easy to follow and I am so in love with how mine turned out.

All the information about the amount of yarn used, sizes etc and links to the pattern can be found on Mark's lovely blog here.

Mark has two options for the mandala, either using Scheepjes Catona or the magical colour-changing Scheepjes Whirl yarn.

As I hadn't really worked with Catona too much, I decided this was a good excuse to give it a go and I have to say I really love it so much! And the range of colours it comes in is incredible - giving you endless options.

I used the cute little 25 gram balls of Catona in the following colours:

Colour A - 106 Snow White (1 Ball)
Colour B - 173 Bluebell (2 Balls)
Colour C - 247 Bluebird (3 Balls)
Colour D - 253 Tropic (4 Balls)
Colour E - 385 Chrystalline (3 Balls)
Colour F - 392 Lime Juice (2 Balls)

I was a little worried after doing a few rounds of Colour D that the mandala was getting really wavy (as pictured above). I contacted Mark and sent him a photo as I thought for sure I must have done something wrong, but he assured me that it was correct and I should continue. He said the outer rounds and blocking would pull it flat and of course he was right - always trust the designer! Once finished and after blocking it does lie beautifully flat.

I'm quite a tight crocheter, so even though I used a slightly bigger hook than Mark recommends (I used a 3.75mm hook) my finished mandala was still a bit smaller than his. Mine measures just over 65cm from point to point.

So go on, give it a go and support a wonderful designer too. It really is a lovely pattern to follow and the end result is just so pretty!

Hexa-Whirl Shawl

Two months ago I released my free Hexa-Whirl crocheted blanket pattern and the response was wonderful!!! It's so amazing when you put something of yourself out there and people respond so well! (Read about that project here)

A few people were concerned about the difficulty of combining two, or more Whirls (and that also doesn't suit everyone's budget), so together with the lovely ladies at Be Inspired we came up with the idea of creating a shawl using just one Whirl.

And the result is something that I think is really beautiful.

What you'll need:

- 1 x Scheepjes Whirl cake (which you can get from Be Inspired)
- 1 x Scheepjes Catona yarn that matches the inside of your Whirl
- 1 x Scheepjes Catona yarn that matches the outside of your Whirl
- Crochet hook (I used a 3mm, but Scheepjes recommends a 3.5mm-4mm hook for Whirl)
- Needle for finishing off
- Scissors
- Hexa-Whirl pattern which can be downloaded here for UK terms or here for US terms

(Swedish translation can be downloaded here / Svenska mönstret kan hämtas här)

For my sample I used a Whirl in the colour "767 Melting Macaron" and Catona colours "101 Candle Light" and "397 Cyan".

This pattern uses the join-as-you-go method (as explained in the pattern) so in the last round you will join the hexagons to each other. If you follow the sequence in the diagram below, the Whirl blends really well.

Once you're finished making and joining all your hexagons, the final thing to do is to make 2 tassels from each ball of Catona yarn and attach them to the alternate corners.

My hexagons measure 6cm across - it isn't important that yours are the same, but just be aware that your shawl will be a different size if they aren't.

My finished shawl is 32 x 164cm and is 5 hexagons by 23.

And an added bonus...this project doesn't require any blocking.

Don't forget to tag your projects on Facebook and Instagram using #madewithdbc I'd love to see your creations!

Disclaimer - if my pattern resembles anyone else's, it is purely coincidental

Hexa-Whirl - A free crochet pattern!

Scheepjes Whirl yarn is my new favourite yarn!!! I absolutely love the ombre effect of the colours changing...it's so magical! Whirl comes in 39 different colour ways so the hardest part about working with it is to choose which one to use! Each cake of yarn has a whopping 1000 metres of yarn! That's 1 kilometre!

When Whirls first came out, I got so excited about the colours, I just bought a few to look at and adore for a while, and didn't actually have a project in mind for them yet.

After a while an idea began to form and so the Hexa-Whirl pattern was started.

And I really love the result!

What you'll need:

- 2 x Scheepjes Whirl cakes (or more if depending on the size you would like to make your blanket)
- 1 x Scheepjes Catona yarn that matches the inside of your Whirl
- 1 x Scheepjes Catona yarn that matches the outside of your Whirl
- Crochet hook (I used a 3mm, but Scheepjes recommends a 3.5mm-4mm hook for Whirl)
- Needle for finishing off
- Scissors
- 4 Beads to add to tassels (optional)
- Hexa-Whirl pattern which can be downloaded here for UK terms or here for US terms

Swedish translation can be downloaded here / Svenska mönstret kan hämtas här)

I used 2 cakes of Scheepjes Whirl in the colour way "Raspberry Rocky Roads" and Scheepjes Catona in 114 Shocking Pink and 393 Charcoal.

This pattern uses the join-as-you-go method (as explained in the pattern) so in the last round you will join the hexagons to each other. To get the ombre effect I started in the corner and fanned out, adding hexagons in an outward direction toward the opposite corner. If you are working from more than one cake of Whirl then you will need to work from all cakes simultaneously. So make a hexagon from cake 1, then make a hexagon from cake 2 and join it, and so on. Once you've made a hexagon from each cake, start with cake 1 again and repeat the process.

Don't get too stressed about making sure the colours shade properly, it can be a bit higgle di piggle - the most important thing is to have fun!

Once you're finished making and joining all your hexagons the final thing to do is to make 2 tassels from each ball of Catona yarn and attach to the alternate corners.

My hexagons measure 6cm across - it isn't important that yours are the same, but be aware that if they are bigger you may need more yarn or you can just make less hexagons.

My finished blanket is 97 x 110cm and is 15 hexagons by 16.

Don't forget to tag your projects on Facebook and Instagram using #madewithdbc I'd love to see your creations!

Disclaimer - if my pattern resembles anyone else's, it is purely coincidental

Colour you own Cell Phone Cover

It's no secret that I love adult colouring! So when I recently saw one of my favourite artists create a range of cell phone covers that could be coloured in, I was over the moon. Sadly upon further investigation I discovered it was near impossible to get these covers in South Africa at the moment. So I wondered if I could create one myself, and turns out...I could!

I went to my local shopping centre and found a reasonably cheap, clear cover that fits my cell phone (I have an iPhone 5S). Then all you need is a photocopied page from your favourite colouring book, a sharp pencil, scissors and of course some pencil crayons.

Place the cell phone cover over your photocopied picture and line it up as desired. Then, using a sharp pencil, trace around the cover and the little hole for the phone's camera.

*Note: You can turn the cover over so that it is flat against the paper - this will make it easier to trace around, but remember your picture will be flipped then. I did it that way - I placed my page against a window so that I could see the design through the paper and I traced onto the back of the page.

Using a sharp pair of scissors cut along your traced lines. You might need to trim it down slightly to get it to fit into the cover nicely.

Then comes the best part - colour in your new phone cover!

I did three of them, which means I can easily and quickly change up my cover as and when I feel like a change.

And voilá! It's as easy as that! Have fun!

Tag your projects on Facebook and Instagram using #madewithdbc I'd love to see your creations!

Demelza Inspired cushion

A while ago I came across the gorgeous Demelza CAL (Crochet-a-Long) designed by Catherine Bligh. The blanket design was inspired by the character Demelza from the BBC TV series Poldark, which is one of my favourites!

I would love to do the full blanket one day, but I have so many projects on the go at the moment that I thought for now, I would only use a part of the pattern and make a fun cushion cover. I found one of the little corner squares in the design really unusual and attractive. I used the left over yarn I had from my Dance in my Granny's Garden blanket (which you can read about here) and this is what I created with it:

I made 16 of the Small Corner squares. You can find the pattern for the FREE Demelza blanket here (the Small Corner Square I used can be found on page 3 in the file with pictures and on page 10 in the file without pictures).

It's all in a Nutshell Crochet has also created wonderful tutorial videos for this square and you can find this here.

I then joined the squares using the flat zipper or slipstitch join. It's a very quick and easy way to join squares and gives a really great finish. You can see how to do that by watching this video.

For the back of my cushion I did a very simple square using the corner to corner method. There is also a very handy video to explain how to do this really great stitch here. I added in a few rows of colour to create some interest, but you could do just one solid colour if you preferred. I really love the way the back of my cushion turned out and now I can use it both ways around.

To join the two sides and finish off the cushion, I did the same border stitch used in my Dance in my Granny's Garden blanket. You can watch this tutorial for it here.

This was a really great project to do, I really enjoyed it and I just love the finished product. Cushions are an easy and affordable way to brighten up a room and give it a new lease on life. This is a really happy little cushion, which adds a fun punch of colour to any drab corner.

Happy crocheting!
X

Tag your projects on Facebook and Instagram using #madewithdbc I'd love to see your creations!

Enchanted Garden Crochet Square - FREE Pattern!

I had always thought crocheting was too complicated and difficult to do, and that it would be one of those things I admire, but is beyond my abilities to do. Then I saw a crocheted blanket on Pinterest that I absolutely had to know how to do (read about that here). So I followed a YouTube video and discovered that crochet is actually super easy and just makes so much sense to my brain.

Ever since then I have been fascinated by the way people can combine a few different stitches in a variety of different ways to make the most amazing patterns! And as I gained more experience with different crochet projects my confidence grew and an idea started brewing - I wanted to be one of those people, I wanted to attempt my own crochet design.

And here is the result - taaahhh-daaahhhh!

I tried a few different designs until I found the one that really made my heart sing! I'm so thrilled with how it turned out and very excited to share my pattern with you.

I've crocheted the above 2 squares with the really-lovely-to-work-with Nuturing Fibres Eco-Fusion yarn, using a size 3.5mm hook, in the colours Cornflower, Vanilla and Orchid (how pretty do those names sound for an Enchanted Garden square!!!). And the square below was made using Scheepjes Colour Crafter yarn, using a 4mm hook, in the colours Meppel, Dordrecht and Eelde. Both yarns can be purchased from BeInspired.

To download the FREE pattern click on either of the links below, for the pattern in UK or US crochet terms:

Download the pattern in UK terms here
or
Download the pattern in US terms here

I hope you have fun and enjoy my pattern. Be sure to share anything you make with it using the hashtag #madewithdbc - I'd love to see it!

Disclaimer - if my pattern resembles anyone else's, it is purely coincidental

Dance in my Granny's Garden

Earlier in the year I came across a gorgeous Crochet-a-Long (CAL) after seeing much chatter about it from a few of my favourite crochet designers on social media. When I investigated further I found out that not only was it run by one of my favourite yarn companies (Scheepjes), but there was also a really sad, but lovely story behind the design of it. The CAL was originally designed by Marinke Slump (aka Wink) from the blog A Creative Being. Unfortunately Wink was never able to finish what was to be her final design. You see, Wink suffered from depression and very sadly succumbed to her terrible illness and ended her life last year - she was only 31!

Scheepjes and Wink's other online friends and bloggers decided to get together to finish the design of this CAL in memory of Marinke and to hi-light the terrible reality of depression, by donating a portion of the sales of kits to the mental health charity Mind.

Here's what Scheepjes has written about it on their website:

As many of you know, this CAL was designed by the late Marinke Slump (aka : Wink) from www.acreativebeing.com and was the final design she was working on at the time of her passing. In accordance with the wishes of Marinke's family, 12 of her online friends and bloggers have completed her unfinished design to present this beautiful and sensitive CAL in Marinke's memory and as a tribute to her work.

The theme of this CAL is: Last Dance on the Beach.
We are sure Marinke would approve of one final dance together on the beach with all her creative friends.

For those of you who don't know what a CAL is or why you would want to take part, here it is - it's basically what it says it is...a Crochet-a-Long. Each week a part of the pattern is released - in this case we were given one block design every week and then had a week to complete 4 of those blocks. The idea is to encourage people to follow the timeline and then you will have a finished product at the end. So many of us LOVE starting new projects, but we're not that great at finishing them! Obviously there is no strict rule about meeting a deadline, it's more of a motivation idea. There is also usually some sort of support group for a CAL as well. For this one there is a really great Facebook Group where people posted progress photos, offered advice, asked questions when they were struggling with something and just generally cheered each other on!

Another HUGE plus about this particular CAL is that there are tutorial videos for each part of the CAL! These have been done by the lovely Esther from the blog It's all in a Nutshell and are so helpful and easy to follow - even the more beginner crocheter could follow them and create their very own masterpiece!

Scheepjes released 2 kit options in 3 different colour ways - Dance in the Sea, Dance under the Stars and Dance in the Rain. You could either get the Lux kit ,which is their lovely Merino yarn in a gorgeous bag with all sorts of extra goodies or you could get the basic kit which is done in their Colour Crafter yarn.

The lux kit was a bit out of my budget, but the Scheepjes Colour Crafter yarn is so soft and lovely to work with, that I really didn't mind. I also didn't really like any of the 3 colour ways Scheepjes had put together - they are nice, but just not quite me. So I decided to create my very own colour combination like a few other people in the Facebook group were doing. They were also giving their colour ways their own names - there was a Dance in the Autumn Leaves, Dance in the Ice-Cream Shop, Dance in the Caribbean etc. I chose my favourite colours from the Scheepjes Colour Crafter range and as I lost my Granny last year decided to dedicate it to her as I think it is something she really would have loved. So I called mine "Dance in my Granny's Garden". Someone later pointed out that the colours looked just like SweetPea colours - which my Granny always had in her garden, so how fitting!

In South Africa the Scheepjes yarns are available exclusively at the really lovely BeInspired in Kloof, Durban (they also have an online shop).

And the link to all the patterns is here and to the tutorial videos is here.

Tag your projects on Facebook and Instagram using #madewithdbc I'd love to see your creations!

3D Paper Heart Tutorial

I really enjoy taking old discarded items and finding a new use for them. For this project I must admit I do feel quite bad cutting up a book, as when I was at school we were always taught that books are sacred and must not be defaced in any way! Oops!

I found this book tucked away on a dusty shelf at our local Hospice charity shop - so I console myself with the idea that I did do a good deed by supporting them (that counts right?)

What you will need:
- An old book (make sure no one was planning on reading it one day!)
- A4 size piece of Cardboard (a cereal box works well)
- Carbon Paper
- Heart Template (download here)
- Pencil
- Scissors
- Glue stick
- Hot Glue Gun
- Ribbon/String
- 2 Pegs (possibly 3)

The first thing you will need to do is print out your heart template that you downloaded. Check to see that your biggest heart shape fits across the text of your old book. As you can see in the image below, mine only just fit! If yours doesn't fit then you may need to reduce your heart template. You can do this when you print it out by scaling your print down a little in the print settings.

Next you will need to trace all the heart shapes onto your piece of cardboard using the carbon paper. Carefully cut all of these out. Taking a bit more time here and being as precise as possible will help make a neater finished heart.

Once you've cut out all your cardboard hearts you're now ready to start tracing them onto your old book pages. Line the cardboard heart template up as best as you can over the text of the book. I usually make sure the top two curves of the heart line up on the same line of writing.

There are two ways to make this heart: If you are going to hang it against a wall you only need to make one side of the heart. If you are going to hang it somewhere that you will see the back of it, then you will need to make both sides of the heart.

You will need to trace and cut out 15 hearts in each size for each side of the heart (so if you're making a double sided heart you will need to cut out 30 hearts in each size). Again, try and cut the hearts out as neatly as possible. Also try and have one heart (two for a double sided one) in each size where the writing covers the shape completely. In other words there are no gaps where there are no words. This isn't always possible, but it helps to try.

Next you will need to stick the hearts together using your glue stick. Line them up as carefully as possible and stick 15 of each sized heart together, with the one with the most text (least gaps) on the top.

***Side note***
Make sure the hearts that are on the top don't have any dodgy words that you don't want visible! You can laugh, but this can happen and once you've spotted it on your finished product you will forever more notice only that!

You will now have ten thick heart shapes (five if you are doing only one side). Starting with the smallest heart, glue it to the next biggest one - making sure it's as centred as possible. Then stick those two to the next biggest heart and so on until they are all five stuck together. Repeat for the other side if you are making a double sided one.

Next measure a length of ribbon or string and stick it to the back of the large heart shape using the hot glue gun. If you are only making a one-sided heart then voilà you are done!

If you are making a double sided heart then you need to stick the two halves together. I use the hot glue gun for this as it sets quicker. Use the pegs to hold the top parts of the heart together while the glue dries. You may need a third peg for the bottom of the heart, but the top is where it bulges a little more because of the ribbon being in the middle.

Once the glue is dry, remove the pegs and TaaaaDaaaa....you're all done! One times pretty three dimensional paper heart to hang wherever you would like!